Runaway October » Parenting

Oh my, it’s been a long time.

Katie — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 21:10:29 +0000

So it’s been roughly 6 months since I’ve posted here. That’s probably the longest break I’ve taken. I’ve just been busy, I guess.

Here’s a couple ~~excuses~~ reasons why:

Went back to school at the last minute. (Not recommended. Summer semester with science and math is not recommended either.)
Declan started Kindergarten.
Halloween party planning.
… Uhm, Pinterest?

Wow, that’s not nearly the list of impressive reasons I kept picturing in my mind. The good news is that I’m sure most of my followers know me somewhat in person and have been in touch on FaceBook.If you don’t know me personally… well, come say ‘Hi’. The worst thing that will happen is I end up with some crazy stalker and they leave dead animals on my porch. I already have a cat that does that, so you’ll have to try harder than that crazy, future, potential stalker.

Declan did surprisingly well with his first day. He seems genuinely excited to go.

Just a few days after starting school, he lost his first tooth!

I’ve been working on a whole lot of Halloween stuff. Here’s a quick Save The Date I made for the party so far.

I only edited this to fit different wording. When I find the original source again, I will give credit where credit is due.

And if I was any kind of GOOD blogger I’d promise pictures of my Halloween stuff and whatnot. But we all know I’m not a very GOOD blogger so maybe, just maybe, I might post again soon.

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New Shiny Blog

Katie — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 22:20:52 +0000

I seem to do this every year around this time, don’t I?

How do you like it? Anything weird that you notice?

And speaking of shiny, or more appropriately, shiners, how do you like this baby? He, sadly, did it to himself when one of the stools he was balancing on slipped out from under him. Poor dude.

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On Being a Stay-At-Home Mama

Katie — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 19:32:20 +0000

“Serenity is not freedom from the storm, but peace amid the storm.”

Peaceful by Joewong038

I’ll be the first person to admit that I dreamed about staying home with my kids. Homeschool, organic, nature walks, art projects, museums, a spotless beautifully decorated house, organized closets and more all floated through my head. I just knew that if I could work it out to stay home, everything would be perfect.

At the time, my husband and I were juggling our firstborn. I worked early early in the morning, and came home to trade off with Matt, who worked late at night. We thought that having one parent with Declan at all times was the best route. Except that neither of us were sleeping well and D wasn’t necessarily getting the attention he deserved. We were there with him, but not really. Many times I was so tired at work that I’d fall asleep on the phone with people.

Once I was pregnant with Rowan, we knew that we needed to do something. We got everything in line and I never returned to work after giving birth to Rowan.

That should be the end of the story right? Butterflies and homemade bread and rainbows.

Not really.

I struggle with staying at home.

Call me lazy, most days I don’t care if you do, but this is HARD.

Laundry is never done, dishes always pile up, the boys are always destroying something, someone always has a snide comment about people who don’t “work”, and there’s no monetary reward for doing it all.

It’s so easy to sit in front of the computer, revive those dying brain cells with random web browsing and just put it off for another day.

Or you can spend the day doing laundry, only to find out that while you were upstairs hanging business clothes, a 10 pound bag of flour was oh-so-quietly flung across the downstairs.

Or you can set out all the supplies for a craft project and be so excited to see what your kids make, just for it to turn into a brawlfest over one orange marker when there’s two others sitting right there.

Or it means trying to write a blog post only to hear a proud “I wiped my butt Mama!” come from the bathroom, where an investigation reveals that you need to dig half a roll of toilet paper out of the toilet. Again.

I’m not alone in this. I know I’m not the only one who has these days, or incidents, or chores. But most days and weeks, I am alone.

It’s hard to have friends when you have two little boys. Other families with kids are busy with their own issues and those without kids, well, don’t want to spend adult time dealing with someone else’s. I feel like a failure when I ask other people to watch my kids so I can run to the store, or have a date night, or just be alone.

Why? I don’t know. Maybe it’s Other Mom Syndrome.

Other Moms have perfect houses. Well behaved clean children. A spotless kitchen. Perfect outings.

But who are these Other Moms? Are you one? Can you please give me some pointers?

I can’t find motivation. Why do it now, if I just have to do it again with no thank you, no recognition, no reason?

Where can I find the motivation to do what I need to do without sacrificing myself?

My husband and I have somewhat regular date nights, but little to talk about other than running the house. The things that he gets excited about go over my head. I’ve been out of his industry for 3 years now, and who really wants to talk about decorating and potty training? He, understandably, has no idea what mitered hems are and what’s the best ratio of borax to Fels Naptha for the next batch of homemade laundry soap. We end up worrying about money, because there never seems to be enough and I get angry because Matt’s company has owed him a raise for a year now and the missing 10k is unlikely to ever be seen.

I try to find people to connect with on the blog-o-sphere, but am easily intimidated by their seemingly perfect lives, beautiful pictures and well-written, thought provoking posts. I can’t find a niche.

Occasionally, we’ll be invited to a party or event but by the time it rolls around I have so much anxiety about going that we don’t. Which typically leads to less and less invites to begin with.

I really want to go back to college, to do something taxing with my mind, to graduate, to have a career, to save lives, to be important. Financially and time management-wise, it’s impossible.

How will I ever find the patience to homeschool? Jeebus, am I even smart enough to homeschool these boys? I really hate math.

Should I just give up on wishing for that beautiful room and buy some plywood and cinder blocks to just get the clutter off the ground?

Unlike most mommy bloggers, I have no solution. I don’t have any encouraging links or action plans. I just really really need to hear from someone, anyone, who has the same doubts and issues.

As I get closer to wrapping this whinefest up, I doubt I’ll click that taunting little ‘Publish’ button up there. It’s just more proof for people to consider me a failure. But, ya know what? Whatever, I can’t hide who I am and the perceived issues I face.

So fire away. I know Momma M would just tell me to ‘Get Over It’, but it doesn’t seem to work like that, as far as I can tell.

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Happy Mother’s Day!

Katie — Sun, 09 May 2010 13:00:16 +0000

Today is Mother’s Day in the USA. Other countries have different dates to appreciate mothers.

It’s really all about the ties of family, the strength of love and appreciation for the leaders in our life.

What better way to show you love your mom then by posting old pictures?

There’s Dad in the back.

Uncle Darrin, Grandma Betty, Mom holding Cody.

Bonnie and I front and center. This was 1989.

Hence those glasses. No, kidding. They’re lovely Mom.

Also 1989.

Grandma Betty and Bonnie, Mom and Cody, Grandma List and Charlie, then me.

Nice Barbie.

1991.

Grandma Betty, Mom holding Erin, Grandma List and Cody.

Pretty Mama.

And just to prove I haven’t always been goofy looking:

Aug ’85. Almost three years old.

So make sure today that you give your mom a hug, tell her that she means everything to you, and be thankful for what you have.

And that she got rid of those glasses.

KIDDING! <3

———————

The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will always find forgiveness.

~Honoré de Balzac

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Rockin’ the Phoenix Zoo for St. Pats Day

Katie — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 03:45:46 +0000

My mother-in-law, Ann, treated me and the boys to the Phoenix Zoo today. We had a blast!

Declan rode a camel, who he named Bill. All by himself too!

They hugged a Komodo Dragon, who they couldn’t decide on a proper name for.

They proved that Cotton Candy will be this years newest accessory.

And rode the Safari Train.

Of course there were animals too.

Bornean Orangutans

Chilean Flamingos

Otter

Watusi Cattle

Reticulated Giraffe

We had a lot of fun!

Now that the weather is warming up, what are you and your kids doing for some fun and sun?

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(Not so) Wordless Wednesday

Katie — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 05:41:07 +0000

These little guys were willing to brave the Arizona rain to get at the pinecone bird feeders the boys and I made the other day. The first batch sat for a week or two before the birds found them, but now it’s like Templeton at the Fair.

And this little boy was willing to brave the rain too!

Good thing Fable was keeping this spot warm for him.

Finished this scarf today. Can’t decide if I like it nor not? It’s at least 8 foot long, and I’m not even going to mention what my brother said about it. Well, maybe. He compared it to parts of the female anatomy. What a butthead.

Made my first batch of Sourdough Bread ever today. It’s so yummy. One of the least finnicky breads I’ve worked with, surprisingly.

I went to check my email and one of the loaves was hoovered down in seconds flat. Mostly by aforementioned brother. Butthead.

There is NO Typo. :/

And last, but not least, I finally got around to packaging up a Valentine’s Day Surprise for a certain special someone. Do you know who you are?

And this concludes our semi-rainy Wednesday stuck at home. Tell me about yours!

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Please don’t forget to vote for me daily, if you would be so kind. Thank you!

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Mothers

Katie — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 06:17:27 +0000

My gorgeous boys

MOTHERS

Real Mothers don’t eat quiche;
They don’t have time to make it.

Real Mothers know that their kitchen utensils
Are probably in the sandbox.

Real Mothers often have sticky floors,
Filthy ovens and happy kids.

Real Mothers know that dried play dough
Doesn’t come out of carpets.

Real Mothers don’t want to know what
The vacuum just sucked up.

Real Mothers sometimes ask ‘Why me?‘
And get their answer when a little
Voice says, ‘Because I love you best.’

Real Mothers know that a child’s growth
Is not measured by height or years or grade…
It is marked by the progression of Mummy to Mum to Mother…

…

My grandma sent this to me today, and I thought it was short, sweet and completely on point. I just wanted to share with the rest of you who might need a little poem about now.

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Happy Mother’s Day!

Katie — Sun, 10 May 2009 20:37:48 +0000

I hope all of you are having a wonderful day. I know I am!

My boys got me this:

Isn’t it cute?

Here’s a Mother’s Day Interview from my 3 year old, Declan:

My Mom

I really love it when my mom puts my clothes on.

My mom likes to wear underwear.

My mom always tells me, “Go to timeout.” (Yikes!)

The best thing she does is feed me breakfast.

It makes her happy when we get on our bikes, go bye bye and have breakfast.

My mom loves to relax by sitting in the chair and talking to me.

I like it when she reads bed time stories.

The best thing she cooks is pancakes.

When my mom shops she likes to buy food and fabric.

My mom’s favorite household chore is ironing.

My mom’s favorite TV show is Spongebob.

If she could go on a trip, she would go to the park.

I love my mom because she is a good, nice mama!

Thanks to Let’s Explore for the wonderful idea!

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Hair Cuts

Katie — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 22:28:44 +0000

Rowan has always had what we affectionately called “Old Man Hair” — Really fine, wispy and easily messed up. Recently it has gotten too long for me to be easily amused by spiking it up, so it was time for a haircut. Since it was to be his first haircut we were going to go to one of those salons for kids, but we arived to find that they had permenantly closed their doors. Makes sense in this economy, I guess. Declan was sad, he had talked about getting a haircut all morning.

So, we just figured we’d do what we always do: Buzz ‘Em!

Declan Before:

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During:

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After! So handsome!

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Rowan was quite unsure about the whole experience…

Before:

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He did really well.

I’m sure the buzzing feeling on his head felt funny at first. About halfway through we had to stop to let him nurse so that he’d hold still for the rest of the “styling”.

During:

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After! Yay!

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Look at all that beautiful hair! Declan and I had a conversation about what to do with it. He wanted to wad it all up and put it in his little tin lunchbox, but I won out by telling him that the birds needed it. He thought it was really cool that the birds could use his hair to make nests out of. Hopefully I can find a nest full of hair so he can see how his generosity is being put to good use.

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This goes without saying…

Katie — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 21:32:50 +0000

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